Pneumatic spraying apparatus



8, 1951 R. N. GILLESPIE ET AL 7 2 PNEUMATIC SPRAYING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 24, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet l Mill/AIM LNVENTORS: Robezgi' 1V. Gill es ,ce Jesse JiiMacri a c Oknialopher .McNizZy, BY 19%) AW ATTORLZ'YZS'.

g- 28, 1951 R. N. GILLESPIE ET AL 2,566,024

PNEUMATIC SPRAYING APPARATUS I Filed Nov. 24, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 7 8 2 VflATEP/AL H066 R g/VENTORS:

oher i' N. 6i e ie, Jessy-X Man and ATTORNEYS.

Patented Aug. 28,1951

UNITED'HSTATES PATENT OFFICE PNEUMATIC SPRAYING APPARATUS Robert N. Gillespie, Jesse K. Mair, and Christo= 'p'her J. McNally, Allentown, Pa., assignors to Cement Gunbompany, Inc., Allentown, Pa., a

corporation of New Jersey Application November 24, 1948, Serial No. 61,874

a surface which is to be coated. Since the mixture must be hydrated prior to its application,

a small amount of water is added as the mixture passes through the nozzlef Usually, the cementitious material is fed through the apparatus by means of pockets provided in the periphery of a revolving wheel. These pockets are successively brought under a gooseneclr construction through which a stream of compressed air is supplied to blow the material out of the pockets to the nozzle where hydration occurs.

In the past, the gooseneck has been provided with a large wide opening for admission of the compressed air into the feed wheel pockets. However, this construction has made the rate of flow of material extremely difficult to control since the stream of air could not be confined only to those pockets which were directly beneath the gooseneck. Because of this difficulty, there developed a tendency, particularly when operating at slow rates, to obtain themixture in slugs and, as a result, even hydration and distribution became diflicult, if not impossible, to obtain due to the pulsating flow of material.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a device of the character described in which the above difficulties are obviated.

In additiomit is another object of this invention to provide a gooseneck construction in which the compressed air is confined only to the pockets directly beneath the air outlet and, in this way, pulsation of flow and slugs are completely eliminated.

Furthermore, it is an'object of this invention to provide the feed wheel with narrower and deeper pockets than have hitherto been employed which will cooperate with the improved gooseneck construction to give improved flow of materials.

And it is a still further object of this invention to provide a gooseneck construction having means for separating the material within the pockets from that which is above the pockets, thereby eliminating suction of material into the pocket by the compressed air.

These and other objects Will appear more clear- 2 Claims. (Cl. 302--49) 2 ly from a study of the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 represents a vertical sectional view of the gooseneck construction of the present invention;

Figure 2 represents a transverse sectional view of the invention on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 represents a fragmental bottom view of the gooseneck illustrating the air discharge slot;

Figure l represents an outside view of the face plate of the gooseneck;

Figure 5 represents a plan view of the lower portion of a machine embodying the present invention; and

Figure 6 represents afragmental vertical section of the lower portion of the machine.

Referring specifically to the drawings the apparatus embodying the present invention, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, is comprised of a receptacle l which rests upon the base member 2 within which a rotatable feed wheel 3 is mounted. The feed wheel itself is comprised of a conically shaped surface 6 at the bottom end of which is a series of thin. blades 5 forming the material pockets 6. We have found it particularly advantageous to make the feed pockets relatively narrower but deeper than those previously util ned and, accordingly, we provide the feed wheel with approximately twice the number of deeper blades previously employed, the pockets formed thereby being nearly twice as deep as before. The side wall 1 of the base member maintains the pockets closed at the outer ends of the blades 5 except at one point where the material is discharged while at the same time the bottoms of the pockets are closed by the floor surface 801 the base member except at the point where the material is discharged. At the top of the comcal surface 4 is a hub 9 through which the feed wheel is both supported and rotated. This is accomplished by mounting the hub 9 upon the reduced portion ll] of the rotatable shaft H in such a manner as to be rotated therewith. The shaft is mounted at its lower end upon a screw l2 and is rotated by a suitably driven worm wheel l3. This latter member is supported within a housing I4 in which the screw 12 which supports the shaft is also mounted. Also mounted upon the shaft H is an agitator l5 which functions to maintain the material above the pockets well stirred whereby lumping and compacting are efiectually prevented.

Fitting to the base member 2 is a face plate 16 provided with a threaded inlet IT to which is connected a supply pipe 18 receiving compressed air from a'suitable source. In addition, the plate is provided with a gocseneck 19 in registry with the threaded inlet I! and extending into the receptacle 2, its open end facing downwardly in registry with the upper opening of one of the feed Wheel pockets 5. As clearly shown in Figure 2, the open end of the gooseneck is restricted to form an outlet slot or orifice 28 which, in contrast to the wide openings of previous gooseneck con structions, confines the compressed air exiting therethrough only to the pocket which the gooseneck is above. The underside of the gooseneck is also provided with the flanged extensions 2i which, in addition to confining the air from the slot 21!, act to separate the material within the pockets from the material above, thereby preventing suction of the material above into the pocket which is beneath the slot 28. In this manner, a more uniform rate of flow is obtained since the flanges actually regulate the amount of material within the pockets.

In the lower portion of the plate It is a circular discharge opening 22 which communicates directly with the pocket located beneath the goose neck slot This discharge opening 22 is enlarged as at in order to provide a suitable seat for the conduit member 24 to which the hose is joined in any suitable manner.

With the above description, it is believed that the operation of the apparatus is now quite apparent. The receptacle 2 having been filled with a mixture of cement and sand, the feed wheel 3 is set in motion thereby bringing the pockets successively under the slot 28 of the gocseneclr 95. A stream or compressed air entering through the pipe is exits through the orifice 28 blowing the cernen'titious mixture from the pocket directby beneath through the plate discharge opening 22 and the conduit 2 to the point of delivery.

providing the cement gun with a flanged gooseneclr having a slotted air orifice, we have ob t-ained excellent results in the flow of cementitious materials, espec "y when used in oornhination with the narrow but deeper iced pockets above described. With this arrangement, the compressed air is confined to the pockets directly underneath the cco necl: and a uniform flow of material at an rate is obtained. Furthermore, by the esent construction we have attained even hydration and even distribution of the cementitious material in contrast to prior constructions wherein such results were, if not ll. ossiole, extremely diificult to attain.

It must, of course, be appreciated that although the present invention has been described as ap= pli ahle to the spraying of cementitious materials, the application of this invention to other similar materials is included within the scope of this invention. Furthermore, it should be understood that changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the present invention.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new is:

1. In a pneumatic spraying apparatus, a feed wheel having a conical surface and blades projecting radially from the lower portion of said conical surface to form a plurality of circumferentially arranged pockets,- a receptacle into the lower part of which said feed wheel fits normally closing said pockets at their ends and bottoms, a gooseneck within said receptacle supplied with compressed air said gooseneck havin an elongated downwardly directed air discharge slot positioned directlyabove the level of the tops of said pockets to that the pockets may be successively brought into registry therewith, said discharge slot extending longitudinally of said pockets andsubstantially the length thereof, the width of said air discharge slot being substantially less than the width of said pockets and substantially the width of said feed wheel blades so that air discharged therefrom is confined to the poclretdirectly below, and a discharge opening directly beneath said gooseneck successively registering with said pockets.

2. In a pneumatic spraying apparatus, a feed wheelhaving a conicalsurface and blades proviecting radially from the lower portion of said conical surface to form a plurality of circumferentially arranged pockets, the depth of said pockets being substantially greater than the width thereof, a receptacle into the lower part of which said feed wheel fits normally closing said pockets at their ends and bottoms, a gooseneck within receptacle supplied with compressed air, the underside of said gooseneck being provided with pair of inwardly projecting, oppositely disposed range extensions forming a narrow and elon d -ownwafdly directed air discharge slot gooseneck positioned directly above the level tops of said pockets so that the pockets may he s iccessively brought into registry there- ""2, said slot extending longitudinally of said :ets and substantially the length thereof, the ..*h of said air discharge slot being substantialy less than the width of said pockets and substantially the width of said feed wheel blades so that air discharged therefrom is confined. the pocket directly below, and a discharge opening directly beneath said gooseneck successively registering with saidpockets.

a Bnn'Ij N.GILLESPIE. E-l-. .MA CHRISTOPHER J. MCNALLY.

REFERENCES CITED The iiollowing references are of record in the file of this patent:

mores sTATEs PATENTS Number Name Date 1,494,669 Crom i May 20, 1924 2,299,565 Colburn Oct. 20, 1942 2,413,293 Colb'urn Dec. 31, 1946 

